


Call the Whole Thing Off

by kiminseong



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Christmas-y, M/M, NOT BETA READ PLZ dont clown me, its for my sis bc i love her, kinda a fake dating au, like i tried
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 07:54:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17178890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiminseong/pseuds/kiminseong
Summary: Mark needed help with impressing the boy he met online, and his best friend, Hyuck, thought he knew exactly what he was doing.(In other words, Hyuck wants an excuse to take Mark on dates).





	Call the Whole Thing Off

**Author's Note:**

> I really hope you like it !! I did my best but idk im sorry if its garbage..
> 
> But to ANYONE reading: plz enjoy!! i really enjoyed writing this and i hope you all like it!

_ “He deserves a nice gesture,”  _ Donghyuck’s high-pitched, squeaky voice rang through the open air. Mark and him sat at a park, both parties eating food across from each other. The park was a wide, open area that many people could crowd. Usually children and their parents would be playing on the playground nearby, but it was too cold to be doing that. Just like it was too cold to be picnicking. Nothing was there to mask the noise of the city around them. Even in Canada, Mark could never find himself out of large cities where peaceful parks seemed to be the centerpiece. 

Mark laughed at what Hyuck had sad, holding his phone out in front of him. He was scrolling through a profile on his phone. It was just an open twitter page, but it was someone Mark had been seriously talking to for a few weeks. Granted they didn’t meet through twitter, they ended up sharing their other social media accounts. “He will get a nice gesture! I am nice!” Mark yelled, food in his mouth. He knew Hyuck was only kidding, and besides, he was joking too. Mark pocketed his phone before the other boy could take it. 

Hyuck finished eating before shouting back, a decency Mark didn’t have, “You _are_ nice, I guess, but you _don’t_ do romantic gestures well!” he tried emphasizing so that Mark would understand. 

Mark still didn’t. He shook his head, “Are you saying that I can’t pull off a decent

date?” he asked, shoveling the last of his food into his mouth. If the noodles he had been eating weren’t spicy, he probably wouldn’t have been surviving because of the could. 

“I am indeed saying that, Mark Lee,” Hyuck smiled as he finished his food. He was shivering slightly, a sign that they should probably be leaving soon. It wasn’t their fault the restaurant was too crowded to eat it inside (though Hyuck would insist that it  _ was  _ Mark’s fault that his apartment was too far away for them to walk there instead of to the park). 

Mark got up, straightening his clothes before picking up his trash. Hyuck followed suit

and, as the two walked to the trash cans, Mark spoke, “That isn’t fair!” Mark laughed again. They tossed the garbage in their hands and stood in the cold a minute. Hyuck was smiling, but his face was red from the food. Mark probably looked similar, in all honesty. 

Hyuck’s cheeks somehow looked pudgier when he smiled. His red-orange hair sparkled in the sunlight, but the white that fell from the sky provided such a contrast that Hyuck managed to stand out no matter what he was next to. “It is fair!” Hyuck joked with him, “You need to know what an  _ amazing  _ date is like!” his voice didn’t fall flat, even when carried by the winds of December in Seoul. 

Mark shook his head again, disbelief crowding him. He knew that as much as Hyuck was definitely joking, he definitely was serious. “So will you tell me what to do for  _ ‘an amazing’  _ date?” he mocked. 

“I could show you,” Hyuck teased, kicking up dirt before he continued walking. 

“Do I need that much help?” 

“You could use it,” he looked Mark in the eye. Mark looked away, embarrassed. 

Seemingly thinking for a minute, Hyuck hummed as they continued walking. It was easy making it out of the park, but it would be another ten to fifteen minutes before they could make it to Hyuck’s house, where he needed to be. “We could have a competition,” Hyuck suggested suddenly. Fog escaped his mouth as he spoke, and the two  _ really  _ needed to get inside somewhere. 

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah! Like...I take you on what would be a  _ good  _ date, and you show me what you  _ think  _ would be a good date… It will just be a back and forth. You can start,” Hyuck must have seen the judgemental look on Mark’s face because he followed himself up, “It will be a learning process, hyung!” 

Mark only shook his head again. Being a hopeless dater was something he should have seen coming, really, especially in the eyes of Hyuck. He laughed, though, accepting the challenge, “Sure,” he agreed. He would probably regret this. 

 

🖤 First Date - Mark’s Choice 🖤

 

The sound of skates touching ice filled the room. People sat, shivering whilst lacing up their large boots with blades. Mark knew that the boy he was talking to, Yukhei, was sporty and athletic, so this would be fun for him. Hyuck was plenty athletic and quite fit, really, but Mark didn’t know of  his ice skating abilities. Surprisingly, as long as the two have known each other, he still didn’t know  _ everything there was to know about him.  _ Most people wouldn’t find that surprising, as it seemed impossible, but, with as much as Hyuck  _ overshares _ , Mark feels like he  _ should _ know everything about him. 

“An ice rink?” Hyuck asked sounding a little sarcastic. 

“Yes! He likes sports, Donghyuck,” Mark tried explaining. He only blinked, looking at Mark, somewhat expressionless. The two didn’t say anything for a moment, Hyuck staring out at the rink after staring at Mark. “Do you know how to skate?” Mark asked. 

“Never even tried,” Hyuck replied flatly. 

Mark wanted to laugh, but he held it in. It was cute to teach someone to skate, right? Mark had seen things about in the media, anyway. Unless the internet was suddenly  _ wrong _ , this would turn out well… “I could teach you?” he offered. 

“You can try,” Hyuck allowed. He and Mark got their ice skates and continued to lace them alongside the many people in the lobby area at the rink. Lots of children and families were there, couples and those alone, even. Mark liked the atmosphere, but what was important was that  _ Hyuck  _ was enjoying himself. He hoped he could do this date justice. 

They both stepped on the ice, both feet unsteady despite Mark’s practice. He slipped a little before getting his balance. Hyuck held onto the side as he stepped in, his feet sliding  _ significantly more  _ than Mark’s were. “Is this okay?” he asked, taking Hyuck’s hand in his own.

The younger only nodded, his face tinted pink. Mark couldn’t tell if it was from the cold or if he was nervous. His hands weren’t shaking, so he wasn’t  _ scared,  _ but Mark wouldn’t be surprised if he had a few nerves over taking his first steps on the ice. Mark smiled as they stepped on, making their way toward the edge. It was where most people were, so Mark wanted to move away, but if Hyuck wasn’t ready to, he would make do. 

“You want to try without the side?” he asked after another minute of Hyuck adjusting to the strange new shoes, “It is okay if you fall, I’ll go down, too.” 

Hyuck gulped, “Sure.” 

Mark kept his hand held tight around Hyuck’s as they drifted toward the center of the rink. It was large, so there was plenty of room for the two. He felt himself start to smile watching Hyuck slide around on the ice. He looked like a baby learning how to walk, but it was so cute. The only difficult part was stopping, he noticed, for Hyuck. He tried to keep going so it was easier, moving was the fun part anyway, so it wasn’t hard. They glided across the the ice, making sure to avoid the abundance of people. Before too long, Hyuck had mostly gotten the hang of it, never falling. He had slipped a couple of times, but each time recovering himself or with the help of Mark. 

“This is fun, Mark-hyung,” Hyuck giggled. There was something childish and amusing about the way he did so, looking at Mark like he was finally having some fun. Mark was happy that his first attempt at a date was going so well, but he was more happy that Hyuck looked  _ so, genuinely  _ happy. 

“I told you it would be,” Mark laughed back. As Hyuck got better and better, he seemed to be enjoying himself more. He was still only a beginner, he couldn’t do much more than move forward and to the sides, but he was enjoying himself. 

They broke hands, but stayed by each other sides. Mark made sure to not speed ahead of him, and to keep close eyes on him in case anything happened. They continued like this for a while. It was likely about an hour or so before Hyuck decided that he was “tired and wanted to sit down.” Mark had to admit, he understood. He obliged, and the two left the rink, resting a bit before they decided to leave altogether. 

“Was that at least a  _ decent  _ date?” Mark asked while they were walking home. He sounded desperate, which he might have been, but neither of them paid any mind to it. 

“ _ Well…”  _ Hyuck drew out, and Mark hit him on the shoulder. 

“Be serious!” 

“Okay! Okay! Honestly, hyung…” he paused a minute, looking at Mark, then looking away. His face was lit up, eager. “I think it was fun,” he admitted, “I am impressed, hyung.” 

“Thank you, Hyukkie.” 

 

🖤 Second Date - Hyuck’s Choice 🖤

 

Mark can hear small talk from many areas around him, but, due to the blindfold that Hyuck tied around his eyes, Mark couldn’t  _ see  _ any of the people talking. He could tell that the place was relatively crowded, but indoors, as he not only walked through a door, but it was rather warm, unlike the cold outside. 

“Can I take the blindfold off?” he asked, his hands raising to remove it from around his eyes.

Hyuck giggled, untying it himself, “Here you go, hyung.” 

Mark eyes lit up, partly from the sudden exposure to light, but mostly from the sight in front of him. The sign hanging in the large lobby was one belonging to an aquarium. Decorations hung around the lobby, and Mark could see the exit of a gift shop on the other side. He wanted  _ so badly  _ to visit here during his time in Korea, but he hadn’t found the time to come. He enjoyed aquariums as a child, but he hadn’t been in  _ years.  _

Mark was speechless, to say the least. Now in line, he was anxious, excitement pouring from him. He was nearly bouncing up and down he was so happy and eager to see everything he had read about. The ride here was long, the bus a little agonizing, and Hyuck had forced himself into the window seat to ensure that Mark wouldn’t “peek out the window,” but everything was worth it. He was ecstatic to be able to finally visit an aquarium again, especially with Hyuck. 

“Do you like it?” Hyuck’s voice broke across Mark’s thoughts.

“Do I like it?” Mark laughed, taking a step back despite being in line, “Hyuck, I love it!” He smiled, acting like a little kid again. He was amazed and  _ so  _ ready to see the rest of the building. There weren’t very many people in the line in front of them, and it seemed to be moving quickly, so the ticket purchasing process must be fairly straightforward. 

Once they got to the front of the line, they were greeted with a teller. “How many?” 

“Two!” Hyuck and Mark announced in unison. Hyuck turned his attention toward Mark, “ _ I  _ am the one taking  _ you  _ on this date,  _ hyung, _ ” he said like he wanted it to sting, but it did anything but. Mark nodded, accepting. Hyuck and the teller exchanged money for tickets and the two were to go into the next line, which could barely be called a line. 

There were three lines, and the one they entered had a woman working. She took their tickets and handed them, instead, brochures. She explained several aspects of the aquarium, including an available audio guide service. “No thank you,” Hyuck was answering her kindly, rejecting anything that would put something or other people between him and Mark. 

Once they had made it into the aquarium, Mark was absolutely  _ enthralled  _ by everything they passed. He stared, wide-eyed into tanks, reading everything about the different marine life he saw. He tried identifying all of the things, matching them with the pictures by the descriptions, when he would get confused, Hyuck offered his help. “Have you been here before?” Mark asked after they had already gone through two halls, Hyuck having helped him at least five times now. 

“Yeah… I used to go a lot as a kid, why?” Hyuck’s smile was wide and he seemed completely interested in what Mark had to say. Admittedly, he hadn’t seen Hyuck  _ this genuine  _ in a while.

When Mark caught himself staring for a minute instead of answering, a blush creeped across his face and he tried to recover by speaking up, “Uh, I was just wondering, you seem really comfortable…” he explained, his attention drifting toward the fish again. 

“I am comfortable because I am with you, hyung~” Hyuck teased, his seemingly ever present smile across his face. 

“Ah!” Mark cringed at Hyuck’s sudden faux cuteness, “Don’t be like that!” he said and the two laughed, not caring who around them heard them.

 

🖤

 

The gift shop was the very last thing visitors saw in the aquarium before leaving. There were many items from nonfiction books on many of the marine animals in the aquarium to stuffed, which were probably intended for children, but, nevertheless, Hyuck bought one for Mark. It was a unique fish, something that Mark recalls seeing but not having heard of it before. It was blue, Mark’s favorite color, which might have been a factor in his purchase, yet Mark felt as if there were many blue stuffed animals available. Regardless, Mark was thankful and he would treasure it. 

“So what did you think about my date, hyung?” Hyuck asked as they walked outside. 

Mark pretended to think for a moment, moving his head as if he was considering some ideas before he laughed and finally said, “It was so fun, thank you so much, Hyuck, really!” 

The younger smiled, seemingly pleased with himself, “You are going to have to take me on another date now, though… One date isn’t going to prove anything to me.” 

“You’re on.”

 

🖤 Third Date - Mark’s Choice 🖤

 

“It isn’t much, but it was all I could think of,” Mark explained mid-argument to Hyuck. He and the younger boy were at a nice, traditional restaurant, and the atmosphere was nice, but Hyuck insisted that something was lacking. The two had already been served, and Mark has already paid just for the reservation, and he still planned to pay for the whole meal. He even told Hyuck not to bring his wallet just to avoid that cliché. 

Hyuck smiled after wiping his mouth with the cloth they were given, “He  _ deserves  _ something more  _ intimate  _ though, don’t you think?” he asked Mark. 

“More  _ intimate? _ ” 

“Yes! You know, like...more touch-y?” Hyuck paused, thinking of how best to explain it to Mark. “Something where you can be side-by-side…” he punctated. He took another forkful of food into his mouth though, letting that sink in with Mark for a minute. 

Taking a sip of water, Mark thought about how he should respond. “But conversation is the best way to get to know someone, isn’t it?” he asked, as if he was questioning something he had read (which he may or may not have done). 

“You haven’t been talking with what’s-his-name for months now?” Hyuck yelled jokingly. 

Mark laughed, but signaled for him to quiet down, “Shut up, Hyuck! But his  _ name  _ is Yukhei… But yeah, I guess you are right.” 

“Besides, hyung,” Hyuck started, a smirk drawn across his face, “Someone would have to love you a lot to watch you eat.”

Mark wanted to laugh and yell at him again, but he decided against it. Instead, he tried getting back at him, “What does that say about you then?” 

“Who said I don’t love you,” the boy didn’t miss a beat in responding. With that, he stood up, putting his cloth down. He walked toward the bathroom, leaving Mark sitting there alone.  _ Awkward bathroom breaks. Yet another fault with dinner dates.  _

 

🖤 After Fourth Date - Hyuck’s Choice 🖤

 

The two boys were walking side-by side back to Mark’s place, where they had been just before Hyuck’s fourth date location. The winter air stung, and it was the week before Christmas, so decorations were hung all around the city. Mark said that it would be nice to walk home, to admire all of the lights, but he didn’t think ahead to the freezing cold air. If the night was going any better, he could consider this his next date choice, but he wouldn’t. He had a feeling (maybe it was the cold, maybe just his nerves) that something would go wrong if he tried calling this a date. 

“Thank you again, Hyuck, tonight was fun,” the two had just left the arcade they were at, Mark carrying a large stuffed bear that Hyuck had won, as well as game he had managed to win. Neither of the two had won many tickets, especially not enough, even together, to win them something like a TV or a phone, but they had both gotten nice prizes. Someone would have to spend a lot of time and money there to win something like that, or at least they would have to be  _ very  _ lucky. 

Hyuck stopped and raised his hand as if to silence him. Dramatically, he and his head too, “No need for thank you’s, my love.” Mark laughed, forcing Hyuck’s hand down. He couldn’t help but laugh hard because of his friend’s dramatic behavior; no one would believe him, but he swore someone could put Hyuck on a stage. He felt some heat creep onto his face, probably from laughing. He was thankful, since it was so cold outside. He knew his cheeks were bright pink, and the hairs on him were standing straight in order to preserve any heat they could. 

“Hyuck!” he cried amidst laughter, “I can’t believe you,” he managed once he stopped laughing, “I was trying to seriously thank you!”

“I gave you a serious response! You didn’t have to thank me!” 

“ _ You  _ didn’t have to stop in the middle of the sidewalk to pose like a early century king!” 

“I can’t believe you knew what I was going for…” Hyuck stopped again, feigning awe. 

“Really?” 

“No, not really. I was going for Michael Jackson, but not all of us are  _ that cultured _ ,” Hyuck suddenly let out in one long sentence as he continued walking. 

Mark let out another laugh and he could see his street in the distance, which he was thankful for. As much as tonight had been  _ amazing,  _ he wanted to leave the cold. Honestly, Mark loved winter and loved snow, but he had to admit, it made him a little homesick. Snow was almost always a guarantee in Canada, so the lack of it in South Korea sometimes made him sad. It wasn’t like it didn’t snow, though. 

“You okay?” Hyuck said, probably noticing Mark’s solemn face. 

“Mhm,” Mark hummed in reassurance, “Just thinking…” he trailed off. 

“About what?” 

“Nothing…” Mark doesn’t know how Hyuck feels about him talking about home, and he can’t imagine that the feelings are all positive. Even if he would understand, Mark could understand how that can make some people upset, but Hyuck isn’t from Seoul, so he might not be upset. Mark wouldn’t trade his Seoul life for anything, but he would like to visit home again.

“It clearly isn’t  _ nothing,  _ Markie~” Hyuck teased, easing the mood a little.

“Ah,” Mark sighed, his breath fogging as soon as it hit the air, “You know what I mean.” 

Hyuck frowned, “Fine, hyung, be stubborn.  _ You  _ are the one that is going to be sad all night,

anyway.” 

Mark raised his eyebrows at the younger. The two had finally made it to his street, and his apartment was on the second floor of the third building down. Hands in his pockets, Mark worried that his fingers would numb to the point of freezing off. 

“I am just a little homesick, I guess,” Mark finally let out. 

“Ah!” Hyuck exclaimed in understanding, “You wanna visit Canada again? Go home for

Christmas?” he asked inquisitively. 

“No! No! That isn’t what I mean!” Mark tried to assure the boy otherwise, “I want to be spend Christmas with you!” 

“Awwww,” Hyuck drew out, “You are such a sweet boyfriend…” 

“We aren’t boyfriends,” Mark explained firmly. 

“But we are dating,” Hyuck winked.

 

🖤 Fifth Date - Mark’s Choice 🖤

 

“Cancelled?” the two said in unison, shock shared between them. Mark had planned on taking him and Hyuck to a movie before Christmas Eve, as it was the last day the theatre was open before the holidays officially prevented it from staying open. Mark had always celebrated Christmas by watching Christmas movies with his family, but he didn’t have his family with him this year to do that, so he decided that spending it with his best friend was even better in some ways. He hated how much he had been focusing on his family recently, too. He wanted to be able to show himself that happiness could easily be found without them. 

The sign in front of the movie theatre, that had the showings, had a large “CANCELLED” paper over it. Mark was disappointed, to say the least. More than anything he was disappointed that he didn’t even know it was cancelled, and he bought the tickets in advance. He probably had a phone call or an email or something, but more than likely he was just going have to wait until the end of the holiday season to ask about his ticket refund. 

The two noticed another sign on the front doors explaining the problem. Mark knew something was wrong when the bus route didn’t list the theatre this week, and the parking lot was completely vacant, but he apparently was unable to put two and two together. The sign on the door informed them of the problems and why the theatre would be closed for a few weeks: “Apologies to those who had pre ordered tickets for the twenty-third of December as well as those wishing to purchase tickets on this date, but all showings this day have been cancelled due to the weather which has caused recent electrical issues within the building. We apologize again for the inconvenience. For ticket refunds, the theatre will reopen on the third of January. Thank you.”  Mark nodded while reading, but then turned to the boy standing by his side. “I am so sorry Hyuck, I should have checked before I—” 

“—It is okay, hyung, don’t worry about it,” Hyuck cut him off. He smiled warmly at him, reassuring Mark that he wasn’t the least bit upset. “Maybe we can just do something together tonight?” he tried to suggest. 

Mark shook his head, frustrated with himself. He had so many pent up emotions right now, but frustration was what he felt overwhelmingly. He didn’t understand why he was so  _ bad  _ at dating. It was like he did one thing right, but Hyuck was right, one date probably wasn’t going to be enough if he ever wanted to  _ actually  _ get to know and spend time with Yukhei. 

“I...don’t really want to,” Mark was letting his emotions get the best of him. Hyuck looked at him, sad, but understanding. “I didn’t  _ mean  _ to be so  _ bad  _ at this,” he didn’t want to start to sound self-loathing or make Hyuck feel pity, but he seemed to be doing just that, so he tried just walking away, literally. 

The two lived on opposite sides of town, and it wasn’t always the best decision to walk alone, but Mark wanted to be alone, and if he wanted to get home anytime today, Hyuck had to just walk on his own. He  _ did  _ feel bad for Mark, especially for teasing Mark over dinner and even when he was having fun at the ice rink. Mark felt worse for some reason he couldn’t explain, though. He wanted so badly just to call the whole thing off, to stop fake-dating his best friend. He couldn’t do it anymore, something about it was eating him alive. 

Mark felt some sort of expectation, from himself or from Hyuck, he didn’t know, weighing heavy on his shoulders. He wanted more than anything to be able to take Hyuck on a nice date, to do something fun with him and be able to brag about knowing exactly what the boy likes and dislikes because he  _ does  _ know that about him, he just has never put it to use before. Something about the whole thing made him uncomfortable from the get-go, though. 

Maybe Mark did need to go back home. He didn’t like feeling this way, not about his best friend. It felt bad, felt negative. It  _ made  _ him feel bad. He agonized over it at night and thought about what it could mean while with the younger boy. He wondered if there was something that he couldn’t name because he felt like he shouldn’t name it. He  _ needed  _ to call the whole thing off. He was probably just taking it too seriously. 

“Where are you going?” he heard Hyuck yell from behind him. He turned around, not wanting to  _ pretend  _ anymore. He was stressed, and he didn’t know why. He felt these— _ things  _ for Hyuck that he didn’t even feel when talking to Yukhei. He has never felt them before. He couldn’t tell if it was guilt or sorrow or a sick form of happiness that he didn’t know he would ever  _ need  _ to feel, but he feels like he needs to keep this emotion, this feeling. Despite how bad it makes him feel, he doesn’t want to get rid of it. 

“I’m going home,” he turns back around after yelling. The frigid air burns his cheeks, and they were pinker than usual. His house was farther away than Hyuck’s, thank god. He didn’t need to be out in the cold air any longer, especially since today was such a waste of time for both of them. 

 

🖤 After Fifth Date - Mark’s Choice 🖤

 

“Pleeeease?” Hyuck draws out across the line. He had called him earlier, asking him to come over, but this made it hard for Mark to wallow, so he had been refusing. Hyuck  _ insisted, _ though, that Mark should come over. He didn’t even know what the two would do, but Hyuck was as stubborn as ever. 

Mark just wants to give another firm ‘no’ in response, but he knows that Hyuck doesn’t give up easily. He knows that he isn’t going to feel any better about today unless he lets himself, too. Accepting  _ these  _ as the reasons for why he is agreeing instead of anything underlying he might feel, he agrees. 

“Fine!” Mark answers suddenly, following his series of ‘no’s’. Mark could practically see the other’s smile. He wished he could, really, but he would settle for knowing he was. 

Some noises came across the other line before he heard a car honk loudly from outside his house. “I have to go check—” he tried to finish, but the line clicked and a beep was all that he heard. He moved into his living room and peered out his window, where he saw Hyuck standing outside a car he had known by heart. It was that stupid, run-down, sad excuse for a car that Hyuck’s parents had given him. But Hyuck only had permit, so he and Mark couldn’t drive together. Was that going to stop Hyuck right now? It wasn’t. And nothing Mark could say would stop him either. 

Mark grabbed his coat and ran faster than he has in a while down his apartment building steps. “What are you doing embarrassing me in front of my ENTIRE apartment?” Mark yelled across the parking lot. Apparently neither of the two were afraid to cause a scene. 

“I am picking you up since you agreed!” the boy shouted back, his voice getting much louder and more audible as Mark crossed the parking lot and moved toward his car. 

Once at the car, Mark ceased his yelling, “How long have you been here? Do you even have your permit on you?” 

“Doesn’t matter, and yes, but don’t get me caught. Get in,” Hyuck motioned for him to go around and sit shotgun. Moving to do so, Mark opened the  _ creaking car-door  _ and sat down next to the younger. The fake leather on the seats squeaked underneath him and he could feel the springs give to the point of no return, except they always managed to bounce back. Mark would never understand how Hyuck’s car still functioned, but it did, amazingly. 

Mark shook his head as he spoke, “Just get us out of here.” 

The car sputtered to a start and managed to get them out of the parking lot, and they made it to Hyuck’s house with an additional seven to ten minutes than what it would have taken in a  _ fully _ functioning car. 

“So why am I here?” Mark asked as he walked through the door to Hyuck’s house. He guessed that no one else was home, since he usually didn’t bring Mark in if other people were there. 

Hyuck only hummed, guiding him through the house to where Mark knew by heart that Hyuck’s living room was. A large TV greeted them, a box of pizza sitting on the table as well. “This pizza isn’t going to eat itself!” he announced, flopping himself down on the couch, where he then patted to seat next to him, telling Mark to sit next to him. 

“No...I guess it isn’t,” Mark breathed in, trying to comprehend the whole thing. He wanted to be as nice as possible, but he wanted to tell Hyuck that they couldn’t keep doing this. They couldn’t keep... _ dating. _

Despite what he  _ wanted  _ to say, Mark continued eating instead, paying equal attention to the movie and pizza. Once the two had done their work to finish the large box in front of them, the movie had reached the part just before the climax, not that the climax was extremely special. The movie was a romantic comedy with a focus more on comedy. It wasn’t his first time watching the movie, so he didn’t mind not-watching anymore of it. 

When Hyuck paused the screen in order to throw the pizza box away, “Wait, Hyuck,” he grabbed on the boy’s sweater sleeve to stop him. 

“Can I at least throw this away first? I know what’s coming, just let me get rid of this,” Hyuck explained with a pout in his voice, but he was smiling.

It took him no more than a minute to throw the box away and come back. By then, Mark had messily wiped the pizza grease off of his face with a napkin and tossed it into the living room trash can. But with Hyuck back, Mark spoke up again, “I am really sorry, Hyuck, but I feel...a little weird about this?” he said like he was asking a question. “Just something about this...makes me feel…. _ weird?”  _ he said again like it was a question. 

“Are you  _ sure?”  _ Hyuck mocked, laughing, but waved his hand to dismiss the joke, “I am

just kidding, but seriously, we can stop, hyung. It would be nice to know  _ why  _ this makes you uncomfortable,” Hyuck explained in an  _ ‘is it me?’  _ sort of way. 

Mark seemed to think for a minute, but he knew the answer. He knew that, for some reason, Hyuck made him want to keep  _ trying,  _ to give up on the boy online. In fact, even now, even ending this, Mark was having trouble keeping  _ Yukhei  _ in mind when he could be thinking  _ Donghyuck.  _ It was absurd, the  _ idea  _ of it bothered him because Mark  _ couldn’t like  _ his best friend. But Mark  _ liked his best friend.  _ “It isn’t you, Hyuck,” he tried saying, unpanicked, “It is just… It is me, for sure. I am sure our feelings aren’t the same, but—” 

“—How do you know our feelings aren’t the same?” Hyuck didn’t miss a beat to question him. He seemed almost offended by Mark saying that, and Mark was taken aback to hear his friend respond so strongly. 

“What do you mean?” 

“What  _ are  _ your feelings, hyung?” Hyuck asked, finally. 

There wasn’t a single cell in Mark’s body that felt he was ready to admit the truth, especially not out loud, especially not to Hyuck. Despite that, the words left his mouth gracelessly and in a jumbled mess, “I like you,” he said it quickly, though slow enough that they both understood. 

Saying it lifted a weight from Mark’s chest. He could almost cry he was so happy. He couldn’t read Hyuck’s initial reaction, but after a second, a smile had broken across his face and he was near  _ giggly.  _ “You are kidding,” Mark said under his breath. 

Hyuck shook his head, laughing out loud this time. “I’m not, not at all, hyung,” he smiled wider, biting his lip this time. He wasn’t nervous, but he was eager.

“You like me too?” 

“Of course, stupid,” Hyuck pressed his hand against Mark’s chest, pushing him back. Mark couldn’t do anything except stare at his lap for a minute, but he was bubbling with excitement, with happiness. He wanted to lean over and kiss the boy, but he also didn’t want to move too fast for himself. He wanted to be with the boy, though. He wanted to hold him close and to accept his feelings for him. “Are you okay?” he asked after a long period of Mark looking down. 

“Huh?” Mark asked absentmindedly, lifting his head from his lap, “Yeah, just...shocked,” he expressed. His face probably said it all, but Hyuck wasn’t afraid to take anytime to make fun of them. 

Hyuck nodded, humming, “So…,” his grin was mischievous, “Do you  _ really  _ want to stop this whole... _ dating thing _ ?” 

Mark shook his head, slowly at first, but faster. He  _ didn’t  _ want to stop. He  _ wanted  _ to date his best friend, and he couldn’t believe it. He bit the inside of his cheek before mustering the courage to finally ask the boy, “I want to  _ really  _ date you, Hyuck,” he explained. 

“I want to really date you, too, Mark.” 

 

🖤 Bonus! 🖤

 

(“How do you plan on telling what’s-his-name?”)

(“Just go to sleep.”)

**Author's Note:**

> tysm for reading! i hope you enjoyed! comments and kudos are by no means required but always appreciated !!!


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